Monthly Funding Report [June 2024]: Indian Startups Raised $2.15B This Month – Analysis, Highlights, & Breakdown

This month recorded a stellar amount of money, $2.15B (to be specific) being raised by the Indian Startups. A surge of 2.53% was recorded from the previous month where the money raised was $1.71B. The list was led by E-commerce giant Zepto which raised $665M in the Series F round. It was followed by LensKart which raised $200M, the investment was led by Temasek and FMR Company. Mumbai-based UGRO Capital secured $151.1M in debt. Social Networking site SCOPE raised $90M, the investment was led by Apricot Capital. Ummeed Housing Finance, a FinTech growth-stage startup secured $76M in Series F. It was closely followed by Chennai-based Northern Arc which raised $75M. Overall, 106 deals were made in this month in the Indian Startup Ecosystem.

According to Infomance Research and Data Available on Public Sources, Indian startups raised $2.15 billion across 104 deals this month. This included 33 growth-stage deals totaling $1.75 billion and 57 early-stage deals securing $398.81 million. Additionally, there were 14 undisclosed rounds, most of them coming in early-stage startups.

[Stage-Wise Analysis]

Growth Stage Deals

The number of growth-stage deals declined to 33 this month from 40 in the previous month. The amount raised by the growth-stage startups accounted to be $1.75B across 33 deals. India’s first Q-commerce startup, Zepto raised $665M in Series F. Second on the list was Gurugram-headquartered E-commerce giant LensKart which secured $200M in a secondary round. The lead investors were Temasek and FMR company. The B2B-modeled UGRO Capital raised $151.1M in the debt round. Fibe, a FinTech firm raised $90M, the investment was led by The Rise Fund Captial and Kabira Holdings. Another FinTech startup, Ummeed Housing Finance was able to manage $76M in Series F. Chennai-based Northern Arc raised $75M, the deal was led by FMO: Dutch Development Bank. EV sector BatterySmart raised $65M in Series B. TravelTech sectored Ixigo secured $39.8M, the investment was led by Nomura Holdings and Morgan Stanley. Other worth mentioning growth-stage startups that were able to raise funds this month include LendingKart, KB NBFC, RENEE, Bluestone, Doceree, and Ather Energy

Early Stage Deals

There was a slight increase in the number of deals cracked by the early-stage startups this month. The no of deals made in June was 57 which is 6 more than the 51 deals made in May. The total amount raised by early-stage startups was $398.81M across 57 deals. Among all the startups in their early stage, the social networking platform SCOPE raised a maximum funding of $90M. It was followed by AgriTech-based Two Brothers which raised $58.25M in Series A, the investment was led by Rainmatter. Bangalore-headquartered consumer electronics supplier Indkal secured $36M in Series A. The B2C-modeled EV-based EKA raised $24M in the corporate round. The leading investors in the deal were Japan’s Mitsui & Company. Other noticeable early-stage startups that managed to raise funds this passing month are EUME, CheQ, Skye Air, Qiro Finance, Trampoline, Alyve Health, Grey LabsAI, and Clean Mobility Solution India.

Round-Wise Analysis

The maximum number of deals were closed in seed rounds. The seed round recorded 27 fundings. It included startups like Apercomm, FMCG-based startup BIGGUYS, London-headquartered E-commerce sector Trampoline, HealtTech firm Sova Health, and B2B-modeled Ayna. Second on the list was Series A with as many as 17 fundings being raised in this round. ZYOD, Sid’s Farm, and consumer services-based AstroTalk are some of the startups that raised funding in this round. It was closely followed by the debt round with 16 deals made in it. Fintech-armed Northern Arc and promising edutech firm upGrad were a few that secured funding in this round. There were 13 deals cracked in the Pre-Series A round. The maximum amount in this round was raised by SCOPE. A total of 7 deals were made in Series B including startups like Hocco, Arthnan Finance, and Battery Smart. Five deals were secured in the Equity round which included startups such as WROGN and Shivalik Small Finance Bank. There were 3 deals made each in Angel and strategic rounds. While, Pre-Seed, Fresh, and Series F rounds recorded 2 fundings each. An investment was made in other rounds like Corporate, Primary, Maiden, Bridge, and Series E.

City-Wise Analysis

Bangalore-based startups led the list with 31 deals secured this past month. It was followed by Mumbai-headquartered startups, raising 21 deals in June. Gurugram was third on the list with as many as 14 startups raising funds. Delhi-headquartered startups raised 7 funds in total this month. Both Ahmedabad and Chennai-based startups closed in on 5 deals. A total of 4 deals were made each in Pune and Hyderabad-headquartered startups. There were 3 investments made in startups from Jaipur. Lucknow and Noida-based startups recorded 2 investments each this month. Investments were made in Chandigarh, Manesar, Bhopal, San Francisco, London, and Singapore startups.

Sector-wise Analysis

As per the sectors are concerned, FinTech-based startups made the maximum number of deals (24). Second on the list was E-commerce sector startups which closed in on 14 deals. Software as a Service (SaaS) startups cracked 8 deals in this past month. Electronic Vehicle (EV) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) based companies infused 7 investments this week. A total of 6 investments were made in Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG). It was closely followed by the HealthTech sector in which 5 deals were made. AgriTech sector recorded 4 investments and there were 3 investments made in Consumer Service-based startups. Sectors like ClimateTech, ChemTech, RoboTech, TravelTech, EduTech, DeepTech, Social Networking Platforms, PropTech, and SportsTech raised 2 funds each. Additionally, there was an investment each raised in AutoTech, Manufacturing, Semiconductor Industry, FashionTech, Consumer Electronics, DroneTech, and SolarTech.

Business-Model-Wise Analysis

The B2B-modelled startups led this list with 51 investments being made. It was followed by B2C-based companies with closing on 41 deals. The D2C-modeled firms recorded 12 investments this month.

Undisclosed Deals

There were 14 undisclosed deals made in the month of June. Almost all the undisclosed were made by the startups still in the early stages. This includes SaaS-based startup Aprecomm, the B2B-modeled Aegeus Technologies, Lucknow-based GreenDay, EduTech centered Clapingo, Hyderabad-headquartered Landeed, and AI-focused Nirwana.ai. Other than these SportsTech sectored Quidich, Mumbai-based Tax Genie and Praan, E-commerce based ThriveCo, SaaS-modelled Fanisko, FMCG startup Lazy Cocktails, and LEO1. There was an undisclosed deal made in one growth-stage startup as well. Ai-centered Celebal Technologies raised an undisclosed amount of funds in a debt round. This investment was led by BlackSoil Group.

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

Nazara Technologies subsidiary and the parent company of Sportskeeda.com, Absolute Sports announced the acquisition of SoapCentral.com, a premier source of entertainment content in the US. It is an all-cash deal of $1.4M and is expected to be closed by the month of July. Before this year, Absolute Sports had acquired a 73.27% stake in US-based Pro Football Network LLC.

360 One Wealth and Asset Management acquired wealth tech platform ET Money for Rs 366 crore. The deal involves cash payment to Times Internet and issuing stocks to secure a stake in the wealth management firm.
Suven Pharmaceuticals acquired Hyderabad-based Sapalas Organic. The pharma company will initially acquire 65.7 % by way of secondary transfers from Saplas’ current shareholders for Rs.229.5Cr. The deal is expected to be complete by Q2, FY24-25.

Suven Pharmaceuticals made an announcement of acquiring 100% stakes in Sapala Organic. Initially, it will acquire 67.5% by way of secondary transfer from Sapalas existing shareholders in a cash deal worth ₹229.5Cr. The deal is expected to be completed by Q2, FY24-25.

Nazara Technologies’ subsidiary Nodwin Gaming acquired Ninja Global FZCO, a UAE- and Turkey-based company with assets in esports and gaming production.
Ananta Capital’s wellness and beauty arm Guardian acquired 55% stakes in personal care startup Anveya Living. The amount of the deal remains undisclosed. Anveya Living will use the fresh capital to develop skincare products.

Yatra Online solidified its presence in adventure tourism by acquiring a 49% stake in Adventure and Nature Network Private Limited. The transaction was valued at Rs.98,04,704. With the completion of the deal, Yatra Online will own a 99% stake in ANN.

Nazara-backed Nodwin Gaming’s Singapore-based subsidiary will acquire German gaming firm Freaks 4U. The amount of the deal is expected to be $32.6M, with this Nodwin’s stake in Freaks 4U will grow from 13.51% to 100% in tranches. Since acquiring a minority stake in Freaks 4U in January 2024, Nodwin has been collaborating closely with the company’s management to integrate their businesses and evaluate potential synergies. Nazara also acquired Comic Con India, a platform hosting pop culture festivities targeting the youth.

Private equity firm Finnest announced that it has acquired a major stake in Bangalore-based cloud kitchen, Kitchens @. An investment of $160M was made by the firm as per the company’s regulatory filing. This investment has made London-based Finnest the largest shareholder in Kitchens @, with around 53.6% stake.

MANAGEMENT DEPARTURE

The fintech company, StrideOne has appointed Hardeep Singh as its first Chief Financial Officer (CFO). StrideOne hopes that this move will strengthen its financial operation and strategy. Hardeep has over a decade of experience in the finance sector having earlier worked as the CFO of Clix Capital, GE Capital.

API banking company CashFree Payments announced the appointment of Abhay Hota as an Independent Director of the Company. Abhay comes with over three decades of experience with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He was the Managing Director & CEO of the National Payments Corporation of India, where he played a critical role in the design, development, and implementation of payment policies.

Veteran armed forces member and MyGate founder Vijay Arisetty has been appointed as founder and CEO of Aurm, an asset protection firm in Mumbai that combines with banks and real-estate developers to provide safe deposit lockers to its customers.

Ex-PharmEasy marketing VP Saumil Parekh has been appointed as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) by hBits, a leading fractional ownership platform. At hBits, Saumil will oversee marketing activities across all functions.

The cofounder of Edutech giant Unacademy, Hemesh Singh has stepped down as Chief Technology Officer after 10 years. Himesh will now move into an advisory role.

VS Mani & Co, a renowned South Indian filter coffee and snacks brand, has announced the onboarding of popular singer and music composer Anirudh Ravichander as its co-founder and brand ambassador. The company believes that celebrity endorsements play a crucial role in increasing its outreach.

Cleartrip, a global online travel agency appointed Anuj Rathi as chief business and growth officer. He will be replacing Ayyappan R. The former marketing officer at Jupiter Money will oversee the market expansion strategies and business development plans in his new role. The announcement was made through LinkedIn.

Vidyakul, a B2C online marketplace for educational services announced the elevation of Akhil Hari Angira as its new Chief Business Officer. He was previously the Head Of Academics in the firm. Akhil comes with an experience of more than a decade in the IT industry. The new CBO will look to increase the profitability and improve the strategic partnerships of the startup.

Paytm announced the appointment of Rajeev Krishnamuralila Agarwal as its non-executive independent director. He will be replacing Neeraj Arora who resigned from the role. Neeraj cited pre-occupation and personal commitments as the reason for his resignation.

Mela Ventures, a prominent venture capital firm announced the appointment of its new Head of Finance and Legal. R Kalyan Sundar a former Assistant Vice President of Finance at Stakeboat Capital, will be heading this department for the venture firm now. In his capacity at Mela Ventures, Sundar will lead strategic financial and investment initiatives, focusing on nurturing and scaling innovative startups across various sectors. His expertise is poised to optimize financial strategies crucial for supporting emerging founders and their ventures.

The Bangalore-headquartered car rental platform provider ZoomCar announced the removal of co-founder Greg Mohan as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the firm after a span of 12 years, as reported in the firm’s regulatory filing. Hiroshi Nishijima, the current Chief Operating Officer (COO) has been appointed as the interim CEO of the company. With this, Greg will also be required to resign from the company’s Board of Directors as per his employment agreement.

Layoffs

The Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) startup, Simpl has undergone another round of layoffs. This time around 50 employees including that of mid-senior manager roles in various departments have been laid off. These ongoing layoffs are done in order to cut costs and move toward profitability.

Kissflow, a bootstrapped Chennai-based Saas firm has fired 45-50 employees from different departments including sales, marketing, and product development. The company cited the discontinuation of the product and after-yearly evaluations as the reason for this move.

Delhi-based ReshaMandi, a marketplace specializing in silk and yarn products laid off 80% of its working personnel. The financial stress including Rs.300Cr+ debt and failure in securing Series B funding are the reasons for such a huge layoff.

VC Fund Launched

Among India’s earliest rupee capital funds, Sixth Sense Ventures is raising $300Mn for its fourth fund. Colruyt Group India, the IT hub of the Euro 9.9 billion Belgian Colruyt Group is investing $1.8Mn in the Pavestone Technology fund. The latest investment marks Colruyt Group India’s second on its portfolio of VC investments after it invested in pi Ventures in 2023.
Maharashtra-based Neo Asset Management successfully secured its first special credit opportunities fundraising Rs 2,575 crore from high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) and multi-family offices.

VentureSoul Partners marks the close of the first debt fund valued at Rs.600Cr. The fund is sector-agnostic but will primarily target tech startups across various domains. VentureSoul aims to achieve the first close of the fund by the end of June.

VC firm Gujarat Ventures Finance Limited, GVFL launched Rs100Cr for its new seed fund Prarambh with a total corpus of Rs.200Cr. The firm plans to invest in 20-30 seed-stage startups this year. Covering sectors like Saas, HealthTech, DeepTech, and ClimateTech.
Early-stage VC firm 8XVentures on 19 June announced the first close of its 2nd DeepTech fund at Rs.200Cr. The fund aims to back 15-20 early-stage Indian DeepTech startups in the upcoming few years.

One of the largest ecosystem enablers for startups in India, BizDateUp has announced the allocation of $400M to support women entrepreneurs across India. Starting from July 1st, women entrepreneurs can apply for funding via BizDateUp’s official website. This initiative underscores BizDateUp’s commitment to fostering diversity, promoting social equity, and driving economic growth through inclusive entrepreneurship.